Wake up Charlie Baker! It’s time to take care of vets, our economy

It is time for our fearful Governor, Charles Duane Baker, to wake up and realize that there is more to life in 2020 than daily coronavirus briefings.

It’s time to focus more on the adverse effects of the coronavirus shutdowns to taxpayers, businesses and yes, our veterans.

While you have been enjoying your summer at the beach with masks on and some social distancing in the sand, radical progressive Democrats on Beacon Hill are pushing drastic legislation that would extend the current moratorium on rental evictions for non-payment of rent by at least another year.

The new moratorium would kick in after the commonwealth’s current pandemic-related emergency order is already lifted.

The proposal is another unashamed example of the Democrats’ efforts to further punish Massachusetts taxpayers, property owners, minority-owned businesses, commercial real estate managers, landlords and the like.

The proposal will also destroy an already-reeling commercial real estate industry and make recovery near-impossible.

Will Baker step in, before it’s too late or will the real estate market crash with his blind eye to the reality of business community needs?

Housing providers who have managed to navigate through the pandemic are still bearing their expenses while providing an essential service, which is a place for all of our residents to live.

Banks are already tightening up lending criteria.

Property owners will not be able to get lines of credit or refinance.

A prominent Boston community bank has already pushed out their requirements asking for six months of escrowed payments from borrowers with exorbitant interest rates.

Bottom line, they are not lending.

We can add a potential banking crisis to the impact of this proposed legislation.

Who will execute maintenance services when landlords lose their properties?

Who will buy these properties when owners lose them? Where will residents go when properties are sold from bankruptcy?

Where are you Charlie?

Now here is another grave issue that is impacting veterans that has fallen off the radar: Veteran services.

As municipalities struggle to navigate the impact of the coronavirus, there is less tax revenue coming into municipalities, as both residents and business battle to recover; and it’s impacting veterans’ services in these communities.

Like many small and midsize communities, the town of Tyngsboro is considering reducing the number of hours it provides to veterans.

The Veteran Service Officers in these communities are potentially being asked to reduce their hours in a time where veterans are in need of services more than ever.

Baker and our Legislature need to assure veterans that services and access to the Veteran Services Officer is at a minimum of 40 hours per week.

After talking with Matt Hanson, the Town of Tyngsboro’s town administrator, he believes the demand for veteran services have dropped off, while one town selectman refutes that information and sees an increase in demand for not only Tyngsboro, but from surrounding communities.

As older veterans who served in the Korean and Vietnam War dwindle, a new surge of veterans from Desert Storm to the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars are starting to access the benefits they have earned.

The need for municipal veteran services is significant and demand will only increase as these veteran groups grow older.

Whether the answer is shared district veteran services for smaller municipalities or a change in a minimum of hours provided to veterans, Baker needs to become more engaged with the world outside of the daily increases and decreases of the coronavirus.

Both landlords and veterans need advocates and assurances that their investments and needs will be met.

It is time for Baker to defend Massachusetts taxpayers, the business community, and veterans from radical progressive legislators.